


Falling For You

by Bundlino



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Dancer Lee Minho | Lee Know, Dare, Embarrassment, Falling In Love, First Meetings, Flirting, Hoodies, Lee Minho | Lee Know-centric, M/M, Mentioned Han Jisung | Han, Mentioned Seo Changbin, Music Major Bang Chan, Skydiving, Strangers to Lovers, Truth or Dare, did they actually flirt idk, implied 3racha, mention of food
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:27:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27208876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bundlino/pseuds/Bundlino
Summary: His roommate makes him do a bunch of dares, leading to a series of encounters with a stranger.Yet Minho isn't quite sure how to approach the whole thing. He barely has time to understand what he feels, but he doesn't hate it.orThe random mini university-dare-skydiving fic that no one asked for.
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 11
Kudos: 93





	Falling For You

**Author's Note:**

> this has been in the drafts for a *long* time, probably since early 2020, but i only recently started working on it again after scrapping the original draft completely because i didnt like it lmao, and somehow i got 8k?? wtf, i didnt mean for it to go that long uh, but a couple things i wanted to mention: this fic basically revolves around the theme/concept of the title, hence the open ending! that's kind of the point, i wanted to try something new, i hope you enjoy it though

Ever since they became university roommates, Minho and Seungmin have had a sort of dare rivalry going on.

Specifically, it started one day on their couch when Minho needed to copy off his answers and change it up a bit to not make it so obvious. You know, normal university things. In exchange, Seungmin happily allowed it. But there was a catch. 

Seungmin didn't hide his sly smirk, shifting on the couch. "You can have my answers. But..."

"Oh, how fun," he sighed.

"Three dares. You have to do them. Whenever I choose. If you don't, then..." Seungmin scratched his chin as he thought a bit, "you have to pay my lunches for a whole week."

"That doesn't sound so bad?"

He laughed. "Well the thing is, I'm feeling very fancy. _Very_ expensive."

Minho groaned. "Fine, I'll do your damn dares," he snatched the assignment out of Seungmin's hands to copy off it.

After writing down two paragraphs, Minho dropped the pencil on the square table. His hand hurt and felt like it was cramping. 

"Now."

He looked over at Seungmin cautiously. "What do you mean now?"

"I want you to do a dare now."

How bad could it be? "Alright, let me hear it."

"Run a lap around the Dance Department building in your underwear. Wait no, keep your pants on. Put your underwear over your head. Scream your biggest secret over and over, but don't hold back. Give it a little extra energy, so maybe everyone in the dorms across the street can hear you."

"Wha— It's the middle of the night."

"So? The street lamps can light your path. It's not like anyone's around. What's the problem?"

He glared viciously. "I didn't think you'd come for the kill on the first dare."

"It'll get easier," Seungmin shrugs. "Maybe. Depending on my mood."

That did little to ease any worries.

Minho stares at a wall, pondering the meaning of life. He was just trying to survive classes like a regular student would. Technically, he could figure out the answers himself. But that would require hours of reading. Which he didn't feel like doing. In hindsight, was this really for the best?

Probably not. 

But at least he doesn't have to read. He used to be able to finish books particularly fast, but these days it's hard to go through a simple sentence without forgetting what it just said. Reading is the _devil_. It's just not his thing anymore.

"You okay?" Seungmin asks. "Or are you too chicken?"

It's the way his roommate's overconfident attitude and relaxed nature continues to tick him off. "If I didn't know any better, it's like you don't believe I could do it."

"Maybe I don't."

That was it. That was all he needed to hear to get through this. Because if there's one thing he loves, it's proving people wrong. Minho shoves on a sweater as it's starting to get chilly at night these days and is out the door, down the stairs, with his roommate starting to follow him across the street. Looking both ways as they do so, of course. Not that anyone was driving this late. 

They were lucky to get this dorm, honestly. It's situated in just the perfect spot, where many restaurants and local junk food convenience stores reside on the same block. The dancers' building itself is just a huge rectangle. So once they step onto the sidewalk—

Fuck.

There's a stranger in a black hoodie that just stepped out of a store's automatic doors. He's carrying a plastic bag filled with chips. About their height. Was he a student?

"Hey!" the stranger waved over once he noticed them, smiling. 

Minho squints. Was he talking to them?

"Chan!" Seungmin fist bumped him. Looks like they know each other. "How's it going?"

"Just getting some late night snacks," he laughs, lightly showing them the brand name inside. "What are you two doing up? Don't you have classes early morning?"

"We were just..." Then Seungmin suddenly changes his expression, smiling evilly. Not outwardly, but Minho could just tell he was doing it on the inside. Like a light bulb going off in his head. "Actually, Minho had something he wanted to do. Out here. Right now."

He fake laughs, nudging Seungmin particularly hard on the side with an elbow (but it probably looks like playful banter). "What are you talking about, Minnie?"

Seungmin nudges him back. "Don't you remember? That thing you promised. You said you'd do it right now."

"I'm not sure I understand," Minho fake laughs again, shooting imaginary death rays with his eyeballs at his roommate's direction.

"You know, that _thing."_

"The first or the second thing?" Minho keeps up his grin. 

Seungmin nods. Minho must be talking about the underwear part of the deal as the _first thing_ and the screaming part as the _second thing._ "You don't have to do the first thing, it was a joke. Also it's pretty indecent. Just do the second thing."

"So I still have to do a thing anyway?" The corner of Minho's mouth twitches.

Chan is looking at them bickering back and forth like they're strange, though he isn't leaving yet. He probably finds it entertaining, but he's too nice to directly laugh at them, given the upward curvature of the corners of his mouth right now.

"Do it," Seungmin cheers, pushing him slightly but not forcefully. "You said you really wanted to be honest these days."

_Wow ,_ Minho really hates him right now. He's not making it any easier. "Oh, okay..." He looks between Seungmin and then Chan and then back to Seungmin. "Here goes nothing," he starts walking over to the building at a snail's pace, which isn't really that far away by now. "Here I go." He takes further steps. "I'm _really_ going," he stalls.

"Go," his roommate shoos him to keep walking.

Minho stops at the front locked entrance doors after a moment's hesitation. They're made of glass, so right now he's seeing himself in the reflection. He's so nervous, he gulps. 

Seungmin yells from the corner of the sidewalk, "Make sure you're extra loud! Just in case I can't hear what you wanted to tell me so badly!"

"Curse you, Kim Seungmin," he mumbles lowly so they can't hear. And why the fuck is Chan still here.

Can't Chan just... fuck off?

"We don't have all night!" Minho doesn't have to turn back to look, he can practically hear his friend obnoxiously smiling as he says this.

All because Minho was too lazy to read. All because he likes to procrastinate. All because the class is boring. Mostly, he blames it on the class itself. The professors don't even teach, honestly, it's a wonder how they get a paycheck. 

He sighs. Fuck it.

Then he darts off in the opposite direction of the other two, sprinting through the grassy patches. He inhales the comforting night air into his lungs as much as he can, racking his brain for any juicy secret to spill in front of his friend and total stranger. He can still hear Kim Seungmin's persistent voice in his head. There's no way he's going to allow himself to pay for his roommate's meals. 

Minho evidently shuts his eyes tight, letting all the tension of making a bad mistake loose, blurting out at the last possible minute, "When you visited my house during vacation break, I farted in front of you and blamed it on my cats!"

Two weeks later, Seungmin still brings this up and haha's and tee-hee's when he can. Although, if you ask Minho, it's getting old at this point. 

"Alright, you've had your fun." 

"Oh come on, don't be upset," Seungmin chuckles, laying his chin on the round table. They're sitting together in one of the university's lounge areas. Minho has been trying to get some work done for the last hour, and Seungmin has a book out in front of him, but he'd rather bother Minho instead. 

Other students around them probably give them occasional glances, not that Minho seems to care.

"You had no mercy."

"How was I supposed to know you'd talk about that? I thought you would talk about another secret, like I don't know," he shrugs with little energy, "maybe you've been in a fight before. Or you wet your pants sometimes. Or you're actually an underground wrestler who makes money on the side. But yeah, I guess what you admitted is also pretty embarrassing to say in front of someone you'd never met before."

"Fuck off, it was all I could come up with," Minho continues to angrily type on his laptop. "And if I was a wrestler I'd have snapped your neck already."

He smirks. "Chan didn't laugh at you though, even when he left before you finished the run around."

Minho squints suspiciously at his screen. "That guy's too nice. There's something wrong with him."

"Oh don't get me wrong," Seungmin wants to laugh again, "he was holding back really hard."

"Definitely something wrong with him. I would have laughed my ass off at him if he did that," he shakes his head, trying to finish an essay.

He's been on the first sentence since they got here. And nothing. The blinking cursor is just mocking him, very annoyingly. Reminding him of the wasted time.

"Speaking of that first dare," Seungmin puts down his phone after reading something on it, "I think it's time for dare number two, wouldn't you agree?"

Oh, fuck. "Fantastic," Minho lies through his teeth.

"Great!" Seungmin sits up enthusiastically, "So here's the plan. Pack up your things. Take your phone. Walk over to the music building, go inside, find Chan. You can't miss him, he's in one of the halls."

"What?" Minho stares. "What are you planning, Kim Seungmin?"

"Not much. All you have to do is take a picture with him. And you're done. The picture itself will serve as proof that you succeeded."

A blink. Two blinks. Three blinks later. "You want me to do _what?"_

"You heard me."

"I'd rather do the first dare all over again. I'll even wear underwear on my head."

A couple students from a table away suddenly stare at them, with confusion on their faces.

"Mind your business. This is a personal grudge," Minho urges, making them turn back around. "Anyway, so I'll just do the first dare again—"

"Nope. Doesn't work like that."

"Do you realize what you're asking me?" Minho is astounded, and he closes his laptop in a serious manner. "You're asking me to go up to the person I embarrassed myself in front of. To face him again. And then you want me to take a picture with him. Literally _no one_ goes up to a random stranger and then decides to take a picture with them."

"That's the whole point. It's embarrassing. It works, and it's what you need to do."

"What did I ever do to you?"

"Became my friend."

"Yeah, I walked into that one. Biggest mistake of my life."

"You better hurry," Seungmin checks his phone again, "because Chan leaves back to his dorm in fifteen minutes. If you don't do this, then consider your money mine."

_"Fine,"_ Minho says with spite, putting his belongings into his bag. "After all this is over, I'm never cheating off you again. I've learned my lesson."

"Little late for that." His roommate offers a small smile. "But on the bright side, I've been bored since the semester started, and you're very entertaining. It's like watching a sitcom unfold. I want to know what happens next. How far you're willing to go."

"Man, you're annoying," Minho slides out of his chair and heads out. 

After exiting the main building, he follows the cemented path that connects to the other departments of the university. 

Doing this wasn't his first choice. He could have eaten a spoon full of hot sauce mixed with wasabi, if dared. He could have tripped in front of the entire drama club! He could have painted the dorm walls a new color, or hopped on one leg for hours while carrying Seungmin's things, or even prank called a professor that was rude (he knows a few that deserve it). Minho could have done many things that didn't require seeing Chan.

But no, Seungmin chose violence today.

The music building wasn't much different from the dancer building, it had the same dark comfy carpet floor covering, the same soft couches, similar tables and chairs, with modernized wooded walls and benches and see-through glass walls that allow you to see into classrooms.

As he enters, he notices the lounge area to his right where dozens of students are seated either talking or doing their work. According to what Seungmin said, Chan should be around. But he doesn't seem to spot the person from that day, or maybe his memory wasn't so good to begin with. Minho heads left instead, passing some empty classes with their doors wide open, peeking his head inside each one just to make sure. 

Further down, it divides into separate halls, so he picks one at random. Judging from the thick doors, each small study room he passes appears to be soundproof, all of them shut and probably occupied with a reservation to practice. Usually students sing in there, from what he's seen in the past, or others adjusted their instrument in respect to a particular song they need to power through each week. 

He has respect for people that manage to do it. It's not easy, he would know. Dance is similar, as he's required to commit a new choreography to muscle memory within a limited time frame. The continuous efforts are a struggle, but the end results are quite self-rewarding. And over time, it does get a little bit easier, with each step accumulating and honing one's experience. 

Minho guesses that Chan isn't in one of these rooms, as it's barely halfway through the current hour and they're usually booked busy until the final minute. If Seungmin is right, then Chan would just be about to leave the premises, not be in one of the soundproof rooms.

He takes the adjacent corridor over to find some small resting areas, passing a couple of strangers that seem to be friends with one another as they're situated around a bench. He looks further down the hallway to spot the backside of a student wearing a cap and black hoodie. Oversized, he might add. 

It seems familiar. 

As he comes closer, he notices this student has their laptop resting on a small table, with three books piled to a side. They have a music program opened on the screen, and it seems complex with a bunch of editing software. 

The student in the hoodie takes a large bite of a muffin as Minho is now right next to them to get a clearer view. 

"Chan?"

He stops chewing, one side of his cheek particularly fuller than the other. His lips are puckered tight as to not let any crumbs out. Now that Minho is actually looking, he notices Chan has one earphone in, the other resting on his lap.

A muffled, _"Huh?"_ comes out before he swallows, and Chan gives a startled gaze in realization. "Oh, you're the friend of Seungmin. Minho? We've met before, right?" he smiles.

Well, Seungmin did kind of blurt out both of their names that last time. So he nods. "Yes and no. You're wrong about me being Seungmin's friend."

Chan sets the half-finished muffin down. Technically it's still morning, almost noon, and he probably hadn't had breakfast yet. "Then, your roommate?" he attempts to correct.

"I've never met him before in my life."

Chan hums in amusement, smiling. "Does that mean you aren't the person that yelled about—"

"You must have the wrong person. I imagine we met differently somewhere else," the comedic formality seems to work in breaking the ice.

Denial. They do often say that denial is a life saver.

"My mistake," Chan laughs knowingly. "So what are you doing here? I thought you were a dancer."

Minho tilts his head ever so slightly at that, blank expression being hard to read. For good reason, since he's now asking questions within his brain. Like, for example, how did Chan know that? Did he ask Seungmin about him? 

"I am," he internally shakes that off as it's possible Chan probably just assumed he's a dancer from the building he ran a lap around. 

It must have been obvious. Probably. It's the dancer's building, after all.

"I was just about to wrap up and take a nap. The timing is really..." Chan looks down at his phone, though the screen is black, "suspicious."

They glance at one another, silently acknowledging that Seungmin played the both of them, but neither seemingly being able to admit it out loud. In hindsight, it's simple. All Seungmin had to do was text Chan to see where he is, then he sent Minho his way. Not that Chan knew at the time. 

"What is that?" he points to the editing program on Chan's laptop, genuinely curious.

"Oh that's just my song for a class. It's not really finished," he squints at the laptop. "I've also been writing lyrics for the past week."

Minho sits next to him, jaw almost dropping in surprise. But he's captivated by something so unique. It's not every day that you find someone who's able to do so much. "You write lyrics? Is it, like, poetic and stuff?"

Chan snorts. "If _hoodie hoodie, boogie boogie, dance groovy groovy_ is the poetic genius you're looking for then sure."

"I can spot a masterpiece when I hear one," Minho grins excitedly, focusing his attention on the software. Then he looks to Chan for a second. "How does it work?"

"Well here it lets me organize everything," Chan points to the bottom portion. "On the top left are some options. And then if I do this.." he clicks a segment of music and drags it over, "I can rearrange like so," after a few keyboard presses the cut part alters. "Basically I can mix it, change it, however I want."

The reflection bounces off Minho's pupils, and he seems starstruck by the whole process. 

It makes Chan happy, chuckling a little. He offers the unused wire side of the earphone to Minho. "Want a listen?"

Minho is puzzled. Staring down at the thing and glancing back up to Chan. "Are you sure?"

"Go for it."

He grins, putting the electrical device in his ear. Chan presses play on the song, and judging from how short all the cut clips look in compilation, Minho assumes it's not finished just like he said earlier. 

The drums start, repeating in a cool rhythym. Minho immediately taps his foot, letting his head rock to the beat. Slow and steady. Not bad! He's already liking it so far. After about ten seconds in, that's when the intense rapping starts blasting and it catches him off guard.

His eyes widen at the unexpectedness, and the words are going by so fast, jumbling in his mind. He can't even keep up. The voice is way different from Chan's. It can't possibly be him rapping in it. But it sounds so well matched. Even with the drums relaxedly going off in the background, having a secured dance of their own. It's upbeat, yet calming in a way. It works perfectly. 

"Who is this?" Minho asks, holding the earphone closely with his palm. 

"A friend of mine, Changbin, we worked on it together. He wrote this part," Chan has been doing the same as him, rocking to the beat.

Soon enough, the rapping comes to a changing halt, and a soothing tone that is contrastingly different comes in. 

Minho scrunches his face ever so slightly, letting it course through his body like warm caramel. Or as if he's by a warm fire place. This sounds heavenly. "Woah."

Now that the rapid pace of word structure has slowed down, he's able to decipher more of the lyrics. 

This non-Changbin person is talking about the gentle wind blowing against his clothes.

And...

Hoodies?

He definitely heard that word in there. Minho looks over at Chan again, "Hoodies?"

Chan shrugs. "I like them. They're soft."

Minho laughs. 

After about another minute of them enjoying it together, that's where the song is incomplete. Minho puts the earphone down. "That was good. Really good."

"Thanks," he saves his current progress on the laptop and exits off the software. "And for the record, I was joking about the _groovy groovy_ part. It's in the drafts, but I probably won't put it into the official version."

"I liked it. If you ever do another version, you should definitely include it. It's fun."

"I'll keep that in mind."

In all honesty, the song is beautiful. It describes the current weather accurately. If Minho imagines it, he could picture himself walking through the park, orange leaves crunching beneath his shoes. The breeze setting in, yet still being warm enough and comfortable. It's simple, but the art of storytelling is there. It describes a feeling. Or a scenario, in his opinion. Showing love for something so small, so trivial, yet it has so much personality behind it. 

It's like he got to see a glimpse inside Chan's head. Inside his friends' imaginations that worked on it, too.

Suddenly Minho remembers why he's here. He clears his throat, taking out his phone and opening up the app. It has its own unique filters that he messes around with a lot, but Chan doesn't need to know that. Minho sees himself in the front-facing camera, and he wonders how to go about this while Chan shuts down his laptop. 

You don't just randomly ask someone you barely met to take a picture. 

...Or do you? Maybe if he's shameless about it. The trick is just to not give a fuck.

"Hey," Minho nudges him with an elbow, scooting closer. "Let's take a picture together. In memory of the time I bothered you."

"Oh? You're not bothering me, though."

Minho blinks, then he thinks of what to say. "Of course I'm bothering you."

Chan finally closes his laptop. "If you were bothering me, I'd have left by now," he beams a warm smile. 

It throws him off. Entirely. 

He's starting to think this dude is too kind. There has to be something wrong with him, right? No one is this nice. It's more strange than Minho being _blatantly_ odd, running around in the middle of the night and yelling about secrets. Or asking for photos. 

The overpowering kindness somehow outclasses Seungmin's dares in shamelessness. It's weird, and that's saying a lot!

It makes Minho nervous. How is he supposed to deal with someone like this. It's impossible.

"Right, well..." Minho starts, "Here goes nothing. One... two..." There's an awkward space between them. A void, he notices. 

Chan seems to pick up on it, too. He physically moves _even closer_ to leave less of a gap between them, and they're practically side by side now, clothes touching. Chan wraps an arm around Minho, over his shoulder as if they're undeniably best friends, and they both smile into the camera. 

"Three," he takes the picture.

After about three days, back at the dorms on a Thursday night, Minho finally breaks.

"Seungmin, please. Just hit me with the last dare already."

It's getting under Minho's skin! He has no clue when Seungmin will drop the final one on him. It could be anytime. Anywhere. 

He hasn't spoken to Chan since then. Thank goodness. But the feeling of the unknown. The feeling of anxiousness when Minho gets out of the bathroom. Or when he's taking a shower. He doesn't know what Seungmin's thinking. Why does it take him so long to come up with another dare?

It's torture, and it gives an uneasiness. 

Seungmin brings a spoonful of cereal to his mouth. "No."

"Please. Please, I beg," Minho drapes his arms over the living room table. They're sitting directly across from one another. "Put me out of my misery."

He chews on his food. Gulps. Then smiles. "No."

What the hell.

"You're creeping me out," Minho relaxes back on his chair. 

"My exact thoughts when you moved in on day one."

"Look, I already told you a secret."

"A medicore one."

"Okay, whatever. But I did it in front of your friend. So that's like two times worse. And I took the photo as you asked."

"Bare minimum."

"What more do you want?"

Seungmin hums, thinking about it. "I just want you to suffer."

"What have I ever done to you? I've never been this mean to you, even jokingly."

"Yes you have."

"Okay, fine, I have. But that's not the point."

"It kind of is," Seungmin laughs. "But it's not all bad. I don't see why you pretend to hate it."

"I do hate it."

"Sure you do," he says sarcastically.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means what it means," Seungmin shrugs. 

Minho sighs in frustration. "Listen, we can put an end to this. Just dare me to do something easy, and I'll stop bothering you."

"I don't think so," he takes a last bite of his cereal, getting up from his seat.

"What? Why not?"

"Revenge purposes. It's out of love."

"Have you considered being the bigger person?"

"No," Seungmin puts his empty bowl into the sink and heads towards his room, closing the door behind him (they have their own rooms).

"At least wash your dishes!" Minho yells, gesturing his arms angrily.

A muffled _"No!"_ is heard behind the door. 

Minho sulks. "Damn it."

That night he got little sleep. Eyes wide awake in the darkness, covered up to his stomach in blankets as he stares at the ceiling. 

The next morning, he gets up earlier than Seungmin. 

Well technically he always gets up earlier than him. 

But this time, he actually cooks his roommate a big breakfast. One with pancakes, and bacon, hashbrowns, orange juice. You name it. 

The food all gets set up on the table very neatly. With syrup ready to go. A side of toast. 

Seungmin enters the living room with messed up hair, and his eyes look tired. He's scratching his head in confusion. "For me?"

"Yup," Minho smiles, shifting the attention to the meal. "All you can eat. Sort of."

His roommate nods slowly, then sits down. He starts pouring the maple syrup generously over the stack of pancakes and digs in. "Why the sudden treatment?" he asks through a mouthful. 

"I just wanted to be nice," Minho pretends to be hurt. "I can't be nice?"

"No."

Minho ignores that. "How does it taste?"

"Good," he continues eating. 

"Would you consider—"

"No."

"Fuck you, Seungmin," Minho snaps. 

His roommate only laughs. 

Later on, Seungmin is laying down on the couch, flipping through some television channels with the remote. About half the day has gone by already, and Minho has been persistently annoying him to no end for numerous hours. 

It's been a couple minutes since the last time Minho asked though, so right about now should be the time. 

And yes, it's the correct timing, as Seungmin guessed. Because he can hear Minho shuffling behind him. "Hey, Seungmin."

"What."

"Can you give me the last dare already?"

"No."

"But Seungminnn," Minho whines like a baby, "Please. Come on!" he pouts.

"You're so annoying."

Minho whines again, hitting him repeatedly on the shoulder. "Seungmin! Seungmin! Seungmin!"

The remote drops. 

"Ugh, fine! Skydiving! Go skydive before tomorrow ends. See if I care," he bends down to grab the remote.

Minho freezes. "What?"

"I said go skydiving! That's your final dare! If you don't do it, you have to pay for my lunch. And no, you can't get out of it. End of discussion."

He nearly faints. "Sky... skydiving. You want me? To go skydiving?"

"Yes, now go away. I'm in the middle of a very important show."

Later that night, Minho barely got enough sleep again. 

Saturday finally comes, and the adrenaline is pumping through his veins. He couldn't sleep anyway. Maybe a couple hours, which is fine. But still. 

Skydiving?!

He hesitantly brings out his phone and searches up near skydiving places. Minho doesn't believe he's actually going to do this.

Jumping out of a helicopter? Extreme stuff? Just like that?

He scrolls through the results on his phone, trying to find something within a reasonable distance. 

His eyes widen. Wait a minute. 

As it turns out, there are different types of skydiving. Seungmin never clarified which one he had to do. That was his loophole!

Minho clicks on the link that shows the nearest skydiving place. 

_Indoor skydiving._ This will be Minho's act of rebellion against Seungmin. By finding ways, or shortcuts, around the dare itself.

This is how he is going to get out of this nightmare dare hell, once and for all.

Coincidentally, the indoor skydiving building isn't too far from the university. It's actually just a literal couple streets away. Almost downtown. But not really. Passing some shopping areas and plazas and a couple restaurants. 

Truthfully, Minho never knew it even existed. 

And why would he? Who goes skydiving?

It's scary.

Minho memorized the route in his head, walking the appropriate sidewalks and respecting pedestrian laws within broad daylight. Like a good, lawful person (he almost laughed to himself).

He arrived. The front entrance isn't anything too fancy. Just a revolving door. 

He scoffs, mentally preparing himself for what's inside. He can do this. 

Minho pushes through it, but trips over himself and hits his head on the revolving door, stumbling indoors now and wincing in slight pain. "Ow," he rubs at his forehead which is probably red right about now.

Once he opens his eyes, he realizes there's a front register area. And an employee there, staring at him. 

What the fuck. That looks like Chan.

Wait.

It's actually...

Minho points at him, "You!"

Chan is amused, with a grin on his face, and somehow Minho is barely noticing the dimples and eyesmile. "Me?"

He's wearing a uniform. It's like a skydiving uniform? A blue suit. Or an outfit kind of thing. It fits almost tight and firm against his skin, showing his body features more clearly. Yet it's snug and loose at the same time. It looks really good on him. 

And _god ,_ was Chan always this muscular?

"Why are you here?" Minho asks, but it's more like yelling. He blinks. "You're not supposed to be here," he says more calmly.

"At my job?" Chan laughs. "Where I work?"

"You... work here..." he repeats.

"Yup. On the weekends."

"I see," Minho nods slowly, processing this. Then he starts to whisper, but honestly Chan can still hear it. The whispering is more for Minho's own processing. "Which means that Seungmin probably knew you worked here."

"Seungmin?" Chan is confused. "Of course he knows. Why wouldn't he know I work here? We've been friends for a while."

Damn it! This was a trap from the beginning. Seungmin _knew_ that Chan worked here. Seungmin _knew_ that Minho would bother him about the last dare, so he timed it perfectly to make it seem like Minho was in control. But in actuality, this was all part of Seungmin's plan. Seungmin also _knew_ that Minho would take the easy way out and go for indoor skydiving. 

Minho has also been friends with Seungmin. It's a love-hate relationship. But right now he hates Kim Seungmin. Although admittedly, that was smart. 

That earns a bit of respect. 

"If I had to guess," Chan starts talking, "this is Seungmin's doing?"

Wow, that was quick. Minho nods. 

Chan smiles in return. "So then you're not that type of dancer student to randomly ask strangers for a picture?" he asks as a light hearted joke.

"You would have the wrong person. We've never met before."

"So you're also not the type to run into a see-through revolving door?" he raises an eyebrow. 

Oh fuck, of course he saw that. "Definitely not."

Denial. Again.

He laughs. "Figured. Well then, since we've never met before," he jokes again, "I guess I should introduce myself. I'm Bang Chan."

Bless you, Bang Chan. You've probably saved a planet in an alternate universe. 

"Lee Minho."

"For what it's worth, Minho, you don't have to do skydiving if you don't want to. I can just lie to Seungmin and say you did it."

Minho is surprised. "You'd do that?"

He nods. "Of course."

And now Minho's mind is racing a million miles a second.

That would be the easy way out. It's right there. The choice dangling right in front of Minho's face, taunting him. He could just walk away right now, away from this place, and be rid of the dares forever. It'd be a weight lifted off his shoulders. And he would have zero guilt doing so, because honestly, it would be nice to take a jab back at Seungmin in his own way.

But...

Somehow it doesn't feel right, and he doesn't know why. 

The way Minho's heart is beating right now. He feels it. A bit. 

Just a bit. 

It's in the subtle nervousness he feels when around Chan. The way in which Minho desperately tries not to make a fool out of himself. It started off not that way, with Chan just being a stranger. 

And technically, he still is a stranger to him. 

But...

If Minho backs out of this dare right now, which he's perfectly in the right to do, it would mean not having an excuse to be around Chan anymore. And there's something in Chan's smile. In his gaze right now. His warmth, and his way of talking that pulls at Minho like a magnet the more he gets to know him. 

Bit by bit. 

A crush.

It's a slow process, Minho knows this. But he'd be lying if he said he isn't slightly attracted to him. 

Chan is a nice guy. Who has overlooked Minho's embarrassing moments. And who has a passion for music. And likes hoodies and soft things. 

Their conversation was nice, too. It felt... oddly right. Somehow. 

Like they just click, even with the few interactions they've had with one another. Minho knows all these details about someone. Who he's just met. And wishes to know more about. Because he's interesting. In every way. 

And...

Minho feels that by going back to the dorm, he'll miss out on something. That specific _something,_ he isn't quite sure what it is yet. 

But...

Maybe it's not about playing it safe. Falling for someone is scary. Just like Minho's slight fear of heights. Maybe sometimes he needs to take some risks.

To allow himself to fall in love. To take some dares in life. 

And if it doesn't work out?

Then...

At least he could say he tried.

"I'll do it," Minho looks him in the eye, with a certain finality behind what he's saying. 

Chan opens his mouth to say something, almost like he's shocked. But the words don't come out right away. Then he smiles, very softly. "Great."

He pushes a few buttons on the cash register and tells Minho the price. 

Minho's soul nearly leaves his body. 

Skydiving is _this_ expensive!?

After he pays (rather grumpily), Chan leads him over to a changing room and tosses him some clothes. A jumpsuit, to be precise. "Here, wear that. You'll need it for the tunnel."

"The tunnel?" Minho repeats. 

Why does that sound scary. Now that he thought about, he doesn't know how indoor skydiving works. 

Once he changes his clothes, Chan leads him to a back door, and inside is a huge open space. 

Just exactly as Chan said, there's a vertical wind tunnel in the middle. Almost completely walled off in a circular transparent barrier. 

"How? Uh, how exactly do I do this?"

"I'll explain," he laughs. "I'll take you into the door of the tunnel, the wind will be pushing back against you."

"Wind..."

"Yeah, it can be pretty scary to trust the wind..."

Just like life in general. 

"...but my goal is to finish a session with you. One of the employees over there," he points to his co-worker, "is in charge of managing the wind. Once you're inside and floating about, I'll guide you. By extending your arms in front of you and raising your chin, it'll help you cut through that wind and elevate. Your hands need to be at about eye level when you're flying, and you can't be lopsiding over. But you're a dancer, so you know all about balance! It shouldn't be a problem."

Minho gulps. Now there's expectations.

"Symmetry is everything once you're in there, basically. Just try your best. I'll help you."

"What if I fly all the way to the top and hit the ceiling?" That's definitely a fear. 

"We won't give you that much wind for a beginner. And if you need me to, I'll hold your hand the whole time."

His nerves kick in, more than before. 

_Hold hands._

What. Who says that?

While Minho was too busy malfunctioning, Chan gently put goggles over him. Then came the helmet, and Chan strapped it for him. Finally, Chan put on his own goggles and helmet. 

"When you feel resistance, you're going to want to start bending your legs, okay? When you straighten your legs, it'll pull you more towards the center."

"Okay..." he responds a bit unsure. It's all happening so fast.

"Just like dancing requires balance, indoor skydiving needs you to adjust your core. Where you place it. As well as tightening your limbs against the wind and knowing how to control it. Just try to remember all that while you're in there."

He made it sound so easy. 

"Oh, and your, uh..." Chan suddenly clears his throat. "Your butt. It needs to be the lowest part of your body when flying. Kind of like making your body concave, I guess you could say?"

The wind turns on, and they can start hearing the noise it produces. 

Chan gently pulls Minho toward the doorway that leads inside the tunnel, and now they're standing directly in front of it. 

Minho gulps again. 

"Okay so first, your arms."

Doing as he remembers, Minho puts his arms above his head, stretching them fully. 

Chan has both of his hands on Minho's chest and his back now. 

"Next, you're going to fall forward into the tunnel. Like a trust fall."

"A what?" Minho's eyes widen. 

"A trust fall. The wind will lift you off the ground before you even hit the floor. And from there, I'll steady you. You trust me, right?"

"Uhh,"

Chan laughs. "It's okay."

It's literally a step away from him. The platform and vent, twirling out a bunch of wind in a strong manner. 

"I trust you," he says finally. 

He nods. "Whenever you're ready."

Fall forward. All he needs to do is fall forward. Like a trust fall where you normally fall backwards. But in reverse. Forward.

Forward.

Minho braves himself, sucking in his breath deeply. And he lets himself fall. 

He feels like he's going to hit ground—

But then he doesn't. 

His body is hit with a bunch of air, sweeping him off his feet. Literally.

And the force is blowing against his face harshly. More than he expected. It's hard to breathe, but he feels light.

He can feel Chan ease him into a horizontal position and then grab onto Minho's hand immediately after. 

That wasn't so bad. 

Minho is floating. 

Very shakily. 

Chan is on the platform, inside the tunnel with him, but he's not in the air like Minho. In a way, it's a relief. Because it's something that Minho can rely on. Or someone, rather. 

"You're doing great," Chan says. "Try balancing out a bit."

Minho does his best to shift the left side of his body equally to his right side. Kind of like riding a skateboard. Except he's bad at skateboards. 

But he's good at dancing. 

So same concept. 

In a way.

He gets it down after a couple seconds, and his body is more steady. But he's clenching at Chan's hand for dear life. "Don't let go!"

Chan smiles. "Don't worry, I won't. I'm right here." 

And it's kind of hard to hear over the wind, but somehow he does manage. 

It's doable. 

"Try turning your hands into the direction you want to go."

What? What does that even mean?

Minho twists his wrists slightly to a side. 

And then...

It works. 

His body follows that direction, as if he's in control. 

Except he is in control. 

He turns again. 

And again. 

It's fun. 

Until he loses control and starts going in circles a bit. Getting dizzy. 

Chan stops him though. 

After some minutes, Minho gained a lot of confidence. But it was honestly a draining process, so Chan eventually took him out and let him rest on a near bench. 

Minho's hair is messy. And he looks like a zombie. 

But that was... fun.

He stares intently at Chan, who is actually flying inside the tunnel on his own. Chan is way more experienced, and it clearly shows. 

Within seconds, Chan flies all the way to the ceiling and nearly touches it. It gave Minho a heart attack, almost. Then somehow Chan comes all the way back down in a couple backflips. And twirls. Getting fancy with some advanced moves here and there, adjusting his body's core and legs. Never hitting the transparent barriers. Or sometimes just outright kicking off them, to project in a new direction.

It reminds Minho of an astronaut. 

"Fucking show-off," he mutters.

By the time Chan's finished having fun, he comes out and sits next to Minho letting out a content sigh, one so satisfyingly happy. "How was it?"

"It was..." Minho thinks. "Not bad."

Chan smiles. "I would hope so. You were kind of crushing my hand back there."

"I was scared."

"Yeah, I could tell. But you got less tense after a while."

"Hmm," Minho smiles. "I did, didn't I?"

"You should be proud. Pretty soon you'll be a pro. It'll take time, of course, but.."

"Jumping out of a helicopter doesn't seem so bad now," Minho ponders, sincerely weighing the possibility. 

"How does next Saturday sound?" Chan asks, and it's like Minho is jolted with electricity. 

His face drops. "What?"

"Yeah, it's basically like a..." Chan feigns ignorance, as if what he's saying is so innocent. "Date."

Minho chokes. 

It appears that the romance is coming sooner than later.

Chan is more perceptive than he leads on, and he continues saying it all so casually. "It's romantic when you think about it. We'd hold hands on our way down, you know, as gravity practically wills us to the depths of hell. I could even backhug you, and we'd see the sight of the world from afar. Our bodies touching, pressing against one another. Suspended in the air. Succumbing to freefall. Letting the air blow passed us. Dulling our hearing for a brief period, but heightening our other senses. And then at the last minute, I pull the parachute. We land together."

It takes a second to regain his composure. "Are... Are you into extreme sports or something? I can't go on a helicopter!"

He smiles. Why is he always smiling at him. And so kind. "I was joking. Just wanted to see your reaction."

Minho blinks in disbelief. Like it's a habit. He can feel his face still reddening again. 

"You're cute when you're embarrassed, by the way."

He knows how to fluster him, and Minho never quite had a response to that.

Before Minho knows it, the rest of the day passes and he's back in the dorms. Laying in his bed, deep in thought. Sunday quickly passes as well. By then, Seungmin knows Minho completed the mission. So Minho is free to go. Although, Minho didn't exactly tell him about every detail. He still needed time to process all that. 

Monday comes.

The university has a park across the street, where people sometimes walk their dogs or do light jogging. 

There's a particularly favorite spot of his on a bench. He gets a clear view of the jogger trail paths and autumn trees. 

Once he sits in his favorite spot, he notices the weather has been getting more chilly at earlier hours. Technically it's a little after noon, but still. It feels nice to let the wind pass over him, letting his hair sway in its wake. The sky is clear blue, with few clouds in sight. The sun is hardly noticeable. It's pleasant. He still doesn't quite know what to do with Chan. 

Now the weather even reminds him of that guy. Because of that song. But also the wind tunnel. 

Minho further dips his hands into his hoodie's pockets. Letting himself sink into its fabric. He feels warm. 

And it does good to clear his thoughts a bit. 

That's when he feels a movement on the bench. 

He turns to find Chan sitting next to him. 

"Are you that guy that went through a wind tunnel because he was dared?" A smile is evident on his face. 

Minho scoffs playfully, deciding to go along with it. "Maybe."

"Could that be because you wanted to see more of me?" Chan is wearing his hoodie, like usual.

"Not at all," he lies.

"Is that so? You could have walked away."

"I chose not to."

Chan nods, but there's a _knowing_ gaze in his expression. He knows Minho likes him. Somehow.

They both know. They just don't explicitly say it.

So it's within that knowledge that Minho decides to turn the tables. "Let me ask this, then.."

"Okay, shoot."

"Are you the person that asked Seungmin about me on day one of meeting each other?"

He laughs, nodding. "Perhaps."

It's funny when Minho realizes it, because Chan wasn't exactly subtle in his hints. He first asked more information from Seungmin about what Minho does, such as hobbies, after that first dare. Then he purposely scooted closer with Minho anyway on the second dare, even allowing the picture. Going so far as to make Minho comfortable in every situation, down to the third dare. 

"What brings you here then, stranger?"

Chan shrugs. "Can't a guy just miraculously find you in the park?"

"Doubt it."

"Alright, alright," he smirks. "Seungmin told me you'd be here."

"That little..."

"Don't blame him too much. In exchange for telling me where you were, now I have to do three dares for him."

He isn't surprised. "What's the first dare?"

Chan looks at him. "If you see me running around the dance building in the middle of the night, cover your ears. It'll be embarrassing."

Minho laughs. So it's the same dares. "What was the point of you doing that?"

"Wanted an excuse to talk to you."

He nods. "About?"

"Anything, really. I like talking. With you," he clarifies. "It's nice."

"Well here we are."

"Here we are," Chan rubs the back of his neck. "I would just... really like to get to know you more. If you want to, that is."

Minho hums. "You described a hardcore date to me last time. But now you're getting shy?"

He laughs, and he sounds nervous. "It's harder than it looks."

He finds that Chan is... cute. Minho has had plenty of time to think about it. And in all consideration, this could be a bad decision. Or it could be the best decision of his life. "I'd like to get to know you more as well," he decides. 

Falling in love comes unexpectedly. But he's already found himself being drawn towards Chan. In little ways. 

Many of his thoughts are also about Chan. About who he is as a person. About what he likes. Dislikes. Where he grew up. Who his friends are. If they're nice people. 

It starts off small. It's amazing, but also scary. It comes with risks. A great leap. He'll never know if it's worth it unless he tries. Preferably, they'll take it slow.

And before he knows it. Maybe... who knows.

Freefall.

**Author's Note:**

> *ending credits start rolling with a montage of their interactions while chan's part in the song plays*
> 
> lmao thank you for reading this... whatever it is.. honestly this fic was basically me making multiple puns with the title and expressing my love for 3racha's hoodie season


End file.
